Sex for clean water: Migrants in Libya subjected to horrific sexual violence, reports Amnesty

The inhuman treatment follows multiple reports since 2017 of beatings, torture and a lack of sanitation and food.

New Delhi: Amnesty International said on Thursday (July 15, 2021) that migrants held in Libyan detention camps are subject to horrific sexual violence at the hands of guards, including being forced to barter sex for clean water, food and access to sanitation. The report, which focused on migrants intercepted in the Mediterranean and who disembarked in Libya in 2020 and 2021, suggests worsening conditions in the camps despite being recently placed under the control of the Libyan interior ministry. Pope Francis and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres have called for their closure.